​I know you’ve got a lot of blogs to hop to, so let’s get right to it!
​Question 1: What are you mentoring?I’m mentoring New Adult and Adult books.

Question 2: Are you going to like my book?Probably if it is one (or more!) of the following:

A mystery

A retelling

SFF

A story involving politics

Literary Fiction

A romance involving fame

A romance with a hero who is a bodyguard, cop, or other type of protector

Scroll down for more details on all of these, as well as books I’ve enjoyed and genres I may not be the best mentor for.

Question 3: Why would I want to work with you?
Okay…so you’ve decided your novel is a good fit interest-wise. Yay! But there are other mentors too, so why would you want to work with me?

Well, I think I know how to write a good novel. But don’t take just my word for it. HEARTSICK and RED BLOODED, have received positive reviews from Library Journal, RT Book Reviews, and USA TODAY. My Wattpad novel, DENALI IN HIDING, has close to a quarter of a million views and is consistently on the list of top Science Fiction novels on the site.
I’ve been in the query trenches before, so I know what it’s like! I also successfully landed an agent—I am represented by Andrea Somberg. :)

If you have any questions before you’d like to submit, just let me know. :)
​Question 4: What is your letter for the scavenger hunt?

Wishlist Details

Mysteries: I love a good mystery, from cozies to gritty procedurals. I also define mystery loosely. If you’ve got a sleuth who’s solving a puzzle, send it to me. :)Retellings: I love seeing how creative authors can get with these. Bonus...If you have a Jane Austen retelling, definitely send it to me! :)Speculative/SFF: I love magical worlds, strange twists on the real world, and anything else that’s got some speculative elements to it. One caveat though: if your book is veryhigh fantasy or really hard scifi, I might not be the best mentor for it. I’m into what you might call “pop” SFF. Think X-Files and Harry Potter, not Dune.I realize that might be vague, so to give you a better feel for what I’m in to, here are a smattering of speculative books I like:

Uprooted, Naomi Novik

Throne of Glass, Sarah Mass

The Cahill Witch Chronicles, Jessica Spotswood

The 5th Wave, Rick Yancey

Charm, Franny Billingsley

The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood

Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card

Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins

Anything political: I was born in DC. I work in DC (on a policy journal). I read the Washington Post and Politico on a daily basis. I’m a total political junkie, so if you’ve got something involving politics, send it to me! :)And, if you also like political books, I recommend these!

Literary Fiction: While the novel-length writing I do is all genre, I’ve also published literary short fiction and my work has been recognized by Writers & Artists and Glimmer Train. I also have a highfalutin master’s degree in writing. So if you have a literary novel, please send it my way.A few recent literary books I’ve enjoyed:

Romances with a Fame element: I’m a sucker for celebrity romances. A few I enjoyed...

The Royal We, Heather Cocks

Jesse’s Girl, Miranda Kenneally

Under the Lights, Dahlia Adler

A romance with a hero as "protector" (cop, bodyguard, etc.)These heroes make me weak in the knees. :)Books I may not be the best mentor for​Historical: I don’t read a lot of these, so I may not be the best person to mentor you if you have a historical novel.That said, if you’d still like to give it a go, here are some historical novels I enjoyed

The Book Thief, Markus Zusak

Caleb’s Crossing, Geraldine Brooks

The Girl with the Pearl Earring, Tracy Chevalier

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Mary Ann Shaffer

Books w/ no diversity, unless there is a darn good reason for it:
I grew up and live in a diverse community, so, basically, books that aren't diverse just..honestly...don't ring true to me. So, if your novel lacks diversity (aka an old, old wooden ship), there better be a really good reason for it. But that's hard to imagine. While there are certainly communities where almost everyone is of the same ethnicity, it would still be hard for me to buy a community/setting where EVERYONE was heterosexual, neurotypical, etc. etc. So, just something to keep in mind.

Mister Linky's Magical Widgets -- Thumb-Linky widget will appear right here!
This preview will disappear when the widget is displayed on your site.
If this widget does not appear, click here to display it.

Thanks so much for posting your lovely wish list. I had a question on your high fantasy preferences: what are your feelings on things like dragons?

Some claim that it's super high fantasy, while some don't, so I thought I'd ask.

Thanks!

Reply

Caitlin Sinead

7/22/2016 05:18:55 pm

I like books about dragons. :) For example, I enjoyed SERAPHINA. That said, I haven't read a ton of books on dragons. So if you're looking for a mentor who is very well read in high fantasy and really gets the market, then I wouldn't be the best choice. Let me know if you have any other questions. :)

Reply

Lindsay

8/2/2016 03:12:13 pm

Thank you for your list and details of potential mentee material! Would your speculative desires encompass very gritty elements of violence and sexual references (not actual graphic sex scenes)? Clockwork Orange or Fight Club type of reading isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it's certainly what I love to write. :)

Reply

Caitlin Sinead

8/2/2016 03:27:06 pm

I loved the book FIGHT CLUB!! And um...my own books have sex scenes... That said, if the violence or sex is gratuitous, that will turn me off. Violence and sex, like everything else in a book, should be neccesary to telling the story. Hope that helps. :)